ShowCase Players to present Wisconsin premiere of new play

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By Kevin Wyeth

The ShowCase Players are set to perform the Wisconsin premiere of playwright Phil Olson’s new play, “Love or Best Offer.” Performances in the Colby High School theatre are Fridays and Saturdays, March 8, 9,15 and 16 at 7:30 p.m., and Sundays, March 10 and 17 at 2 p.m. Tickets cost $10 at the door, with a $1 discount if you bring a non-perishable food item for the food pantry.

If you want a chance to score free tickets via a random drawing, fill out an entry slip and drop it in the provided box at any of the following libraries: Abbotsford Public Library, Colby Community Library, Dorchester Public Library, Greenwood Public Library, Loyal Public Library, and Owen Public Library. There will be two pairs of tickets drawn per library.

The synopsis from Concord Theatricals states, “Cheryl (Roxie Wetterau, Spencer) is a widow of two years, Stan (Jordan Aschenbrenner, Rib Mountain) is newly divorced. After failed blind dates, their best friends, Lori (Jeffer Scheuer, Owen) and Dave (Nathan Bier, Greenwood), convince them to try online dating with the new dating website, “Friends, Love or Whatever.” With the worst dating advice in the world from their friends, Cheryl and Stan set out to find happiness and true love—online. All the trials and tribulations of online dating come to the forefront, including overcoming heartbreak and rejection, all in an effort to find love...or best offer.” Like all synopsis’ it doesn’t tell the whole story… During the summer of 2022, the Show-Case Players (SCP), were contacted by playwright Phil Olson to provide feedback for the new play he was working on. SCP had produced two of Olson’s plays in the past, including 2019’s production of “A Nice Family Christmas,” and its predecessor, “A Nice Family Gathering,” some years before. SCP held a Zoom meeting with Olson in late August 2022, where various members took part in a dramatic reading of his script. Afterward, they provided feedback for Olson. SCP was one of only twenty-five community theaters across the U.S. and Canada that Olson had readings with.

When asked about the inspiration for the play, Mr. Olson said (edited to avoid spoilers), “My girlfriend of eight years, Nancy, inspired me to write “Love or Best Offer.” Nancy is “Cheryl” in the story. Cheryl is a fiduciary and she manages special needs trusts. So does Nancy. Cheryl has a special needs daughter, and a son who was estranged from her for two years. So does Nancy.” To find out the resolution of Cheryl’s story, and how it mirrored reality, you will want to see this play.

The play is comprised of several contemporary internet-related and technology use themes, that surged into the public spotlight because of the Covid lockdowns. The play leverages tech, such as Zoom meetings, and Internet dating sites to show how interpersonal relationships are evolving in the digital age. Covid lockdowns also forced theatre groups and other in-person performance arts to use the “burgeoning” digital technology to survive the pandemic. Olson explained how this relates to “Love or Best Offer.” “Covid definitely had an impact on the use of Zoom in the play. I wasn’t very familiar with Zoom before Covid, and like everyone else, became very familiar with it. Because Zoom is so popular today, I wanted to, as you say, leverage the burgeoning tech, in the play.”

Finally, when Olson was asked if any other community theaters in the state had produced “Love or Best Offer,” Olson confirmed that, “No other theatre in Wisconsin has done the play. You will be the Wisconsin premiere! Thank you for doing the reading and helping me to develop the play!”

HITTING THE STAGE TO FIND LOVE - The cast of “Love or Best Offer” from left to right: Roxie Wetterau, Jordan Aschenbrenner, Jeffer Scheuer and Nathan Bier.

SUBMITTED PHOTO/KEVIN WYETH